Jan. 2022

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Starting on January 11th, students will engage in 5 advisory lessons over the course of 2 weeks in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. It’s a wonderful opportunity to educate students about this great man’s contribution to the civil rights movement along with discussing the implications to society today.

A Note from Dr. Wendy Watson, Principal

Hello Spokane Garry students and families. Starting this week, students will watch the first of a series of videos shown once-a-month regarding safety and security. The purpose of the videos is to lower student anxiety about their fears surrounding school crises and to assure them that the adults in our school are well prepared to take care of students during a crisis. Most of the videos will have me, as the principal, talking to students about safety and security. At times, other people will be in the videos as well. In this day and age, especially with the concerns around threats as it applies to social media, it’s important to have open discussions with students to talk about their fears and to also not let that fear be ever-present at school. Messaging will include the roles we all play in our school and community to look out for each other and provide a safe environment.

Character Traits of the Month: Leadership

January’s character trait is Leadership. Students who display this trait will see how things can be improved and rallies people to move toward that better vision or common goal.

Citizenship Students of the Month - November November's character trait of the month was citizenship. Students demonstrated this by positively contributing to society and community as well as dutifully respecting authority and the law.

Tomas Duval Rayne Hendershott Ideal Holland Caden Brakins Natalie Ha Amanda Burnham Muzhgan Timoori Hunter Buckmaster Orchid Almaet Zohra Kohistani Taeshaun Asterino Kyra-Lei Saniatan Peyton Harper Zytavious Silva Jayden Christenson Juslene Irankunda Ella Bonnett Caleb Johnson

Holidays and Early Dismissals

Spokane Garry Middle School will be closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day MONDAY, JANUARY 17th. We will also be closed MONDAY, JANUARY 31st for a semester break.

Students will be released early at 2:15pm on Friday, January 14th and Friday, January 28th for Teacher Collaboration days.

A Message from the Homeless Education Program

We understand that some families may have had a change in their housing situation. This may qualify your children for additional services through our HEART (McKinney-Vento) Program. Please let us know if you are: ·        Sharing housing with others due to financial hardship ·        In a hotel/motel ·        At a shelter or in transitional housing ·        Staying in a car, park, campground, or other unstable situation If any of these describe your current situation, please contact the HEART Program at 509-354-7302. We can help with getting school clothing, school supplies, transportation to and from school, provide referrals to community resources, and more!

January Music Performance

Thursday, January 27 5:00-7:00PM

The Spokane Garry Music Department would like to invite you to a fun musical tradition-our annual Mamma Mia’s/Garry M.S. Lasagna Feed and concert! This is a fund raiser for the Garry Music Program and a celebration for completing the first half of the school year. Mamma Mia’s will provide the food, we will need volunteers to help serve. Menu Lasagna, Fresh Roll, Cookie, and a Drink $10 Entertainment Schedule 5:00-5:20 Percussion Class 5:25-5:45 Beg./Int. Band 5:50-6:10 Orchestra 6:15-6:35 Advanced Band 6:40-7:00 Choir Students should be in the music room, ready to perform, at least 20 minutes prior to their performance time. Students may eat or go home after their performance.

Volunteers are needed to serve food. If you would like to help, please contact Mr. Poole (ChristopherP@SpokaneSchools.org) or Mrs. Thomas (ChristinaT@SpokaneSchools.org) 509-354-5113

End of Semester 1

Semester 1 is ending on January 28th! Report cards will be distributed in early February.

SOARRR Awards!

Starting this week, students will have the opportunity to earn SOARRR Award tickets from staff in the building for demonstrating the three R’s: being ready, responsible, and respectful. Students can earn a ticket for demonstrating the three R's. These tickets will be handed out to students throughout the week to place in a drawing. Drawings will occur every Friday morning to award 10 students the opportunity to spin the prize wheel during lunch and win prizes donated from the community. These prizes include free pizza cards, stickers, gift cards, Wii time during lunch, water bottles, and more! If you earn a SOARRR Award ticket, fill it out with your name and turn it in to the drop-box outside the student office to enter the drawing!

Registration

This month we expect to begin the registration process for the 22-23 school year. Current 8th graders will register for high school and parent information nights will be offered this month. Those dates will be clarified soon. For 7th graders we will work in Advisory classes during the month of February around selecting classes for the 22-23 school year. We will also have resources available online to help with the registration conversation. For current 5th & 6th graders from Arlington Elementary, Whitman Elementary and Lidgerwood Elementary, we will work with the teachers in those school around registering for classes at the end of the month and into February. More information about class offerings to come later this month. For information about the boundary changes and transition of current 5th & 6th graders to 6th and 7th grade for the 22-23 school year, please visit our district website.

Sports Updates

Basketball Season Starting Now! Basketball season has begun for 7th graders and will begin on February 14th for 8th graders. There are some new guidelines directly from the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association. In response to recent sports-related outbreaks, the testing requirements for high-risk sporting activities has been updated to require screening testing for ALL athletes, coaches, trainers, and supporting personnel (does not include bus personnel or event staff) regardless of vaccination status. Further, the testing has increased to 3 times weekly. Among the screening tests, at least one must occur no sooner than the day before the competition; ideally and whenever possibly during the day of the event. For detailed information, please see the Spokane Garry Website or click here. If you have questions, please contact Kim MacPherson at 509-354-5138 Sign up for Family ID here!

Staff Spotlight!

Mike Birch - CCLR Teacher

Describe what you do at Garry Middle School and how long you’ve worked here.  I teach College, Career, & Life Readiness (CCLR) where we discuss four main units: Finance Literacy; Tobacco, Drug & Alcohol Awareness; Human Growth and Development; and High School and Beyond Plans. This is my first year at Garry Middle School after teaching at Huntington Middle School in Kelso, Washington for 21 years. How do you like to spend your time when you’re not at work? I enjoy spending my time re-connecting with my family and friends in the area after being away from Spokane for 21 years: dinners, Gonzaga games, trivia, watching sports, or just hanging out. What’s something people don’t know about you? I was the only family member of 23 people, including my 30-year-old daughter, Danielle, and her husband, Jordan, that didn’t live in the Spokane area, so in the middle of August, I decided it was time to move back to Spokane. Within two weeks, I applied for this job, interviewed, got the job, resigned from my job of 21 years, and moved here. I’m still trying to settle in after such a big life change. 😊 Is there a quote or saying that you live your life by? I believe in having a growth mindset, and that all the events of my life have shaped the person I am today whether the events have been difficult or good. I believe in having compassion, respect, and kindness toward people, and that the world would be a better place with more people practicing these characteristics.  Where is the coolest place you’ve travelled? I enjoy travelling, and one of the coolest places I have travelled was to Lutherstadt, Germany where I was able to explore the surrounding cities and countryside. I also had the opportunity to visit three different types of schools and how their education system worked. It was very interesting to see another country’s educational values. I’ve also travelled to Dublin, Ireland and had a blast.